Chapter Ninety-Five: Documenting the Haunted Case

Chapter Ninety-Five
She Was No Longer Bound by the Soul Fate Register!

A thought suddenly sprang up in Zhao Fusheng’s heart, filling her with ecstatic joy.

She never expected that last night’s eerie carriage ride would bring such a tremendous benefit.

Although the existence of the Investiture of the Gods List had prevented her from considering leaving the Demon Suppression Division, not leaving the division was one thing; being controlled by the ghostly minions was quite another.

With this in mind, Zhao Fusheng had another sudden idea: she wondered if her name on Liu Yizhen’s Fate Register had changed as well.

If the karmic ties on her Fate Register were also severed by a substitute ghost, that would truly be a joyous matter for her.

She resolved that when she had some free time, she must return to Beggar’s Alley to check Liu Yizhen’s Fate Register.

Just as Zhao Fusheng was lost in thought, Zhang Chuanshi, in disbelief, reached out again to rub the name of Fan Bisi.

The dark red figure’s eyes flashed with resentful red light. Fan Bisi, caught off guard, was struck by him and immediately felt a splitting headache, crying out painfully:

“Mind your hands, don’t touch randomly!”

After being scolded, Zhang Chuanshi felt embarrassed and quickly replied,

“The lord’s soul will bite.”

Zhao Fusheng sneered as she watched him.

At this moment, the Fate Register was not restraining her soul, but binding a truly fierce ghost. Zhang Chuanshi’s reckless meddling was his own undoing.

Feeling uneasy under her gaze, Zhang Chuanshi dared not move again and hastily hugged the Fate Register to his chest.

Afraid his earlier actions might have angered Zhao Fusheng, he turned his eyes and tried to change the subject:

“My lord, what ghostly disaster did you encounter last night? Has another ghost case appeared in Wan’an County? Why don’t you tell us? County Magistrate Pang is here and can record it for you.”

He shamelessly used Magistrate Pang as a favor. Pang was deeply concerned about the county’s ghostly troubles and, hearing this, nodded eagerly like a pecking chick:

“Yes, yes, Zhang Lingshi is right. Why not recount it as last night? I will record it for you.”

“This case cannot be told to you.”

Zhao Fusheng shook her head firmly.

Zhang Chuanshi persisted:

“Please, my lord, since everyone is here, wouldn’t it be a chance to broaden their horizons and let them witness your divine power?”

“Yes, yes.”

The others, seeing someone take the lead, all joined in coaxing her.

Zhao Fusheng was utterly speechless at these old men stirring up a ruckus.

She snapped,

“You really are a troublemaker, always drawn to excitement like a moth to flame, reckless to the point of risking your life. Go away!”

Her nature was blunt and forceful, but since Zhang Chuanshi had known her, he hadn’t found her temperament as strange or difficult as he originally thought.

Having worked together on the Dog Head Village case, they had once faced life and death together. Now, scolded by her, the smile on Zhang Chuanshi’s face froze, and he was momentarily at a loss.

Fortunately, his skin was thick.

After a moment’s stunned silence, he forced a smile and was about to speak when Zhao Fusheng said:

“This ghost case is no ordinary matter. Anyone who merely hears or discusses it will be marked by a fierce ghost.”

Only then did Zhang Chuanshi understand her serious intent.

His eyes suddenly shone brightly as he choked out,

“My lord—”

Zhao Fusheng ignored him.

Upon learning that merely hearing or discussing the ghost case would lead to being marked, the others were gripped with fear.

Magistrate Pang wished he could bite off his own tongue, regretting ever suggesting he record her ghost cases.

“……”

The group exchanged uneasy glances, silent and uncertain, when suddenly the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside. Fan Wujiu, who had been absent until now, burst through the outer door and grabbed a servant, asking:

“Has the lord returned?”

Hearing his voice, Zhao Fusheng called out,

“Second Brother Fan, come in. I have something to tell you.”

Then she turned to Zhang Chuanshi:

“I have other matters. Old Zhang, please escort Magistrate Pang and the other gentlemen out of the government office.”

Fan Bisi was slightly stunned.

Magistrate Pang and the others felt a huge weight lift from their hearts and quickly stood to take their leave.

Zhang Chuanshi reacted swiftly, his eyes flickering as he understood the meaning behind Zhao Fusheng’s words.

He could hardly contain his joy as he replied,

“Rest assured, my lord. I will properly escort you and the gentry.”

Zhao Fusheng nodded.

Fan Bisi’s face turned pale, his lips instantly losing all color.

Though Zhang Chuanshi was officially a member of the Demon Suppression Division, he had been forced into the government office by Zhao Fusheng against his will and was eager to escape, never bothering with the office’s trivial matters.

The routine affairs of receiving and sending guests within the Demon Suppression office were managed by Fan Bisi, who had always handled the reception of Magistrate Pang and others.

Now, Zhao Fusheng’s dismissal of Zhang Chuanshi and summons of the two brothers made it clear she intended to discuss the ghost case with them.

But she had already said that hearing about the ghost case would mark one—meaning she was deliberately drawing the brothers into this peril.

Fan Bisi was sharp and nearly instantly grasped her intent.

A flicker of resentment crossed his eyes, followed by bitterness, but after a long moment, he concealed all emotion and, in desperation, grew calm.

“Don’t let Wujiu come in.”

Fan Bisi resolved,

“My lord, I will accompany you in discussing this case.”

As he spoke, Fan Wujiu rushed into the hall and overheard Fan Bisi’s words. He looked at Zhao Fusheng with a joyful expression:

“My lord has indeed returned safely. Now we can rest assured.”

Then, curious, he asked,

“What case?”

“Wujiu, leave.”

Fan Bisi’s tone was sharp.

Fan Wujiu looked confused. Zhao Fusheng slammed the table and commanded,

“Neither of you is allowed to leave. Go to the archives room to discuss this matter.”

Fan Bisi did not want to go, but Zhao Fusheng’s attitude was resolute. With a ghost tamer’s power at her disposal, no room was left for the brothers to argue.

One looked disgruntled, the other bewildered, and they followed her as she instructed the servants to guard the door, forbidding anyone from entering.

Once the door was closed, Zhao Fusheng pointed to a chair and said,

“Sit.”

She sat down first.

Fan Bisi did not sit. After a moment’s hesitation, with a troubled expression, he said,

“Fusheng, I’ve wronged you all along. My brother is simple-minded. You want him to leave; I will accompany you on this ghost case.”

“What ghost case—” Fan Wujiu asked in confusion, but Fan Bisi cut him off sternly:

“Shut up!”

He hated that Wujiu had returned at such an inopportune moment, fearing his brother would be dragged into the ghost case and trapped.

“Brother—” Fan Wujiu sensed the danger and called out, but Fan Bisi ignored him and instead looked at Zhao Fusheng:

“Fusheng, I admit my brother and I have offended you before, but that day—”

Though mature and somewhat ruthless, Fan Bisi was still young. At this life-or-death moment, his voice choked with emotion:

“You promised me that once I finished handling the matter of your parents, our grudges would be set aside, that you would not mention the past or hold it against us.”

Zhao Fusheng looked at him coldly.

Seeing his eyes redden and him wiping them unconsciously, she sneered,

“Do you think I want to harm you?”

“Isn’t that so?”

Fan Bisi looked up at her, a mix of anger and confusion:

“You said earlier that this ghost case is unlike any other. Anyone who mentions or hears it will be marked by a fierce ghost. You said it yourself, and Magistrate Pang and Old Zhang heard it clearly.”

He continued, feeling wronged:

“You ask me to stay, fine, but who is Zhang Chuanshi? He’s a relative of Paper Man Zhang, shifty and deceitful, full of ill intentions.”

His anger grew as he said,

“If you want us brothers involved in this case, then Zhang Chuanshi should also be here listening. We are all from the Demon Suppression Division. We rise and fall together. If we must die, then we all die together!”

He was quick to put aside pride and, when realizing resistance was futile, ruthlessly tried to drag others down with him.

“I don’t have the time or inclination to scheme against you.”

Zhao Fusheng shook her head, sighing inwardly. Wan’an County’s Demon Suppression Division had clearly been a disorganized group before, raising people lacking both morality and comradery.

“Can you write?” she asked calmly, uninterested in Fan Bisi’s complaints.

Fan Bisi did not expect such a reaction after his long speech. After a moment of silence, he said reluctantly,

“I’ve learned a bit,” then added sarcastically,

“But certainly not as well as Magistrate Pang.”

“Enough talk. Get a blank case file. I will dictate, you write.”

Though Fan Wujiu had initially been confused, he now grasped the situation from his brother’s conversation with Zhao Fusheng. Hearing her command, he nervously grabbed his brother’s arm and shook his head.

But the situation was beyond their control.

When they were powerful, they could bully the Zhao family at will.

Now Zhao Fusheng was stronger. Knowing they faced certain death, the brothers had no choice but to submit.

Fan Bisi glanced at his brother, his jaw twitching briefly. He shrugged off his brother’s hand, pulled out a blank case file, poured ink, and prepared to write. Just as he was about to plead for Fan Wujiu, Zhao Fusheng said:

“This case involves the ghost carriage.”

The water jug in his hand trembled, spilling water all over the table.

The two brothers looked up in astonishment. Zhao Fusheng chuckled and looked at Fan Bisi:

“Do you think I am reneging to settle personal scores?”

“No—of course not—”

Fan Bisi lost his composure, shaking his head in panic.

Now he finally understood why Zhao Fusheng had kept them behind. Her words implied she had indeed encountered the ghost carriage last night.

Fan Bisi recalled the reply from Zhang Xilai, the carriage driver of the Demon Suppression Division, who said Meng Po mentioned Zhao Fusheng boarded a carriage last night and then disappeared.

At first, when Zhao Fusheng’s name vanished from Zhang Chuanshi’s Fate Register, Fan Bisi suspected she had encountered the Yellow Springs Ghost Carriage.

But seeing her at Meng Po’s stall early this morning, he hadn’t connected the two events.

After all, cases involving the Yellow Springs Ghost Carriage had appeared before, and none who saw or spoke of it survived. Clues about the ghost carriage were astonishingly scarce.

If Zhao Fusheng had truly boarded that carriage, death was certain; she should not have returned.

Yet now, back at the Demon Suppression Division, she spoke of the ghost carriage case, proving she had indeed boarded it and returned safely.

“……” Fan Bisi was momentarily speechless, standing frozen with the water jug in hand, mouth opening but no sound coming out.

“I am no righteous hero and cannot guarantee your future survival. I do admit that once I have settled my parents’ case, I will no longer seek revenge.”

She paused, then added,

“But that does not mean I must protect you.”

Within the Demon Suppression Division, handling ghost cases was an inescapable fate.

Even if the Fan brothers left Wan’an County, they would inevitably be commanded by local authorities elsewhere.

Zhao Fusheng said,

“I do not care about personal grudges. I only consider the case. Whoever is suitable will be involved.”

She glanced at Fan Bisi:

“The world is like this—life and death are beyond one’s control; it all depends on fate!”

Then she continued,

“Speaking of the ghost carriage case, it was originally you who brought it up, causing me to be marked by the fierce ghost.”

Back then, newly reborn and ignorant of the fierce ghost’s rules, she now realized Fan Bisi’s mention of the case may not have been entirely sincere.

She looked at Fan Bisi with a smile:

“When you brought up the ghost case that day, you had other intentions. We all know it, so why pretend to be wronged now?”

“……”

Fan Bisi grew uneasy.

Hearing the ghost carriage case referenced, he realized he had misunderstood Zhao Fusheng.

Born into chaotic times and beset by misfortune, the Fan brothers were highly distrustful, dealing only with ruthless people like Paper Man Zhang or harsh ghost tamers.

Such an environment had bred Fan Bisi’s suspicious and vicious nature, unwilling to trust easily.

When trouble arose, he judged others by his own nature, assuming they were all conniving villains like himself.

Upon hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words, he was stunned for a moment, then moved his lips silently, tacitly accepting her command.

Zhao Fusheng did not press the issue further.

“This case was originally discussed by the three of us. If not you, then who else?”

Zhang Chuanshi was sly and ambiguous; Zhao Fusheng did not trust him. But since no one else could help, she never intended to cause unnecessary deaths.

“Now look at you, crying and putting on a show of brotherly love, trying to drag others down with you—”

The more she scolded Fan Bisi, the more awkward he became. His normally dark face flushed red, tears glistening in his eyes. He tried to wipe them away but dared not, shrinking down silently under her harsh words.

“I don’t care about your petty schemes. When I lack people for a ghost case, I take whoever is suitable. Don’t come to me with complaints or whining. I don’t want to hear it. Understand?”

“U-understood.” Fan Bisi glanced awkwardly at his brother and replied.

“Good.”

Zhao Fusheng glanced at the inkstone before her and nodded, signaling the end of the topic.

Fan Bisi had initially worried the matter would be difficult to resolve, but after her scolding, she changed the subject to the ghost carriage case itself:

“In the eighth month of the 246th year of the Great Prosperity era, near Beggar’s Alley, a ghost carriage was encountered, suspected to be a fierce ghost once driven by a golden general who died over fifty years ago during the headless ghost resurrection incident in the imperial capital.”

“……”

Fan Bisi was still lost in thought about today’s events, standing motionless.

Fan Wujiu, seeing Zhao Fusheng no longer dwelling on the past and his brother seemingly unable to respond, nudged him anxiously:

“Focus, big brother.”

“Oh, oh, okay.”

Fan Bisi was usually sharp, rarely absentminded like this. At his brother’s reminder, he hurriedly set down the teapot and called on Fan Wujiu to grind the ink. He glanced nervously at Zhao Fusheng and was about to speak when he suddenly recalled the ghost carriage case Zhao Fusheng had mentioned earlier and exclaimed,

“What?!”